How to make a scatter plot in Google Sheets

Scatter Plot is one of the many visualization charts that Google Sheets offers. You can generate a Scatter Plot using the data in your sheet to gain insights about the data. A Scatter Plot can help to identify trends and visualize the distribution of data points.

Say you have data of how many hours a student spent studying and the marks the student obtained. You can create a Scatter Plot to identify trends. 

From the above plot, you can see that the lesser the number of hours spent studying, the lesser the marks. However, if the number of hours is too high, there is a reduction in marks obtained. Study time close to 8 hours is the optimal limit. Anything lesser or more than that impacts the marks negatively. 

How to Create and Delete a Scatter Plot

  • Generating a Scatter Plot using the Chart option
  • Customizing the Scatter Plot’s look using Chart style
  • Adding trend line in your Scatter Plot
  • Deleting the Scatter Plot

Generating a Scatter Plot using the Chart option

Google Sheets allows you to make a Scatter Plot using its in-built Chart option

Step 1: Highlight your data.

Highlight the data you want to view in your Scatter Plot. You can do this by right-clicking and dragging your mouse across the range of cells. 

Step 2: Select Chart from Insert.

In the main menu bar, click on Insert. It will open up a dropdown. Select Chart from the dropdown. 

Step 3: Select the type of chart.

Once you click the Chart option, one of two things can happen. Google Sheets will automatically predict the best type of chart for your data. It will display that chart. 

If it is a Scatter Plot, you can use that. 

If Google Sheets displays a different chart, you can go to the Chart editor dialog box at the extreme right. Now, click the dropdown icon of Chart type.

Step 4: Finalize your Scatter Plot.

Once you get your Scatter Plot, check if it suits your purpose. 

If you’re not satisfied with the chart, you can customize the chart using the Chart editor. You can also right-click on your chart to customize it. 


Customizing the Scatter Plot’s look using Chart style

Don’t worry if you find your Scatter Plot’s default look boring. You can customize it to your liking using Chart style

Step 1: Identify your Chart and Click the Three Dots. 

Identify the Scatter Plot you want to customize. On the top right corner, you can find three dots. Click on it. 

Step 2: Tap on Edit Chart.

After clicking the three dots, you can see a dropdown. Click on Edit Chart to customize your scatter plot.

Step 3: Click on Chart style.

You can customize the color of your border and background, the font, and the size using Chart style.

Say you want to change the background to a different color. You can select the color using the Color picker dropdown and change the background like in the image below. 


Add trend line in your Scatter Plot

The trend line is a tool to understand the relationship between two variables. 

The slope of a trend line can tell you the type of correlation between two variables. A positive slope indicates a positive correlation. Similarly, a negative slope indicates a negative correlation.

Step 1: Click the three dots on the chart you want to draw the trend line.

Identify the Scatter Plot on which you want a trend line. On the top right corner, you can find three dots. Click on it. 

Step 2: Tap on Edit chart.

After clicking the three dots, you can see a dropdown. Click on Edit chart to customize your Scatter Plot to include the trend line. 

Step 3: Click on Series in the Chart editor.

After you click Edit chart, you can see the Chart editor dialog box at the extreme right. You can see two tabs called Setup and Customize. Tap on Customize and then click on Series.

Step 4: Check the Trendline checkbox.

After clicking Series, scroll down to find Format data point. You can now see three checkboxes: Error bars, Data label, and Trendline

Now, check the Trendline checkbox to get the trend line on your Scatter Plot. 

Once you check the Trendline checkbox, you can see options to customize the trend line. You can change the line’s color, opacity, and thickness.

Step 5: Finalize your trend line.

After you’ve checked the Trendline box, ensure you’ve made the right customizations. Check if your Scatter Plot and trend line require changes. 

Your final Scatter Plot with the trend line will look something like this:


Deleting the Scatter Plot

You can delete the Scatter Plot by tapping on it and pressing the backspace or delete key. Alternatively, you can also follow these steps.

Step 1: Tap on the three dots.

Click on the three dots on the top right corner of your Scatter Plot chart. 

Step 2: Tap on Delete chart.

Tap on Delete chart to delete the generated Scatter Plot. 


Wrapping up

Now you know what chart to use when you have to identify data trends. Along with learning how to generate a Scatter Plot in Google Sheets, you also learned how to insert a trend line. You know how to style your Scatter Plot so that you don’t have to stick to Google Sheets’ default theme. 

Leave a Comment